One of my favorite laptops I’ve tested this year is ultraportable and has all-day battery life.
This has been a big year for advances in processor technology, and it only continues to accelerate. Intel has just announced its next generation of high-performance, AI-enabled chips with the Core Ultra Series 2, and one of the first laptops to feature them is Asus Zenbook S 14 Laptop.
Last month, ZDNET Cesar Cadenas Go hands-on with Zenbook S 14 runs an Intel Core Ultra 5 processor, complimenting the laptop’s performance, battery efficiency, and vibrant OLED display. The accessible hardware configuration of 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage helps keep the price at a comfortable $800, while the processor’s NPU does the heavy lifting. The biggest downside we noticed was its tendency to run hot. We’ll talk more about that later.
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Now, a month later, we have another configuration of the Zenbook S 14 with just announced Intel Core Ultra 7 200V (2nd Series) processor on 32GB, 1TB loadout. Intel’s new chip comes with an enhanced NPU 4.0 AI Engine for 47 TOPs, aiming to close the gap with other AI-powered processors with upgraded x86 performance and a redesigned architecture to power thinner, lighter devices (and try to run cooler).
Asus’ Zenbook S 14 is already a thin, power-efficient machine. This processor aims to improve and scale performance in ways that consumers care about (and that the market is closely watching right now). In that context, Intel is taking aim at other AI processors that power its Windows PC Copilot+ line, like Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X series and AMD’s Ryzen AI chips.
I tested the Zenbook S 14 for a week and found that this Core Ultra 7 Series 2 laptop performs very similarly to the Snapdragon X and Ryzen machines mentioned above. It’s fast, with lightning-fast load times and smooth switching between apps while multitasking. Even better is the laptop’s gorgeous OLED display, which has a variable 120Hz refresh rate for a smooth, premium feel.
While running industry standard scope of benchmarking software On this machine I get numbers that correlate with Intel’s expected numbers:
| Cinebench 24 MC | Geekbench 6.2.2 SC | Geekbench 6.2.2 MC | |
| Asus Zenbook S 14 with Intel Core Ultra 7 200V (2nd Series) | 481 | 2748 | 11050 |
In terms of battery life, the Zenbook S 14 is nothing to sneeze at. In our streaming test, the laptop lasted over 17 hours streaming full-screen video over Wi-Fi. However, in normal, continuous use, I was able to get between eight and ten hours, depending on what I was doing.
This is where AI comes in: Intel’s “Smart Display” power-saving technology and dynamic adjustment feature use machine learning algorithms to automatically adjust brightness, refresh rate, and contrast based on user activity and on-screen content. This is what allows this device to easily play media for hours on end with just a little battery life.
On the body, the laptop’s Ceraluminum finish is matte and slightly rough with a mottled organic texture. Overall, the Zenbook’s design is bold and fresh, defined by thin bezels and sharp, straight lines. The keyboard feels soft but pleasant to the touch, and the trackpad is functional and well positioned, reaching right to the very edge of the device.
Intel promises thin and light form factors with its new processors, and this baby is thin and light indeed. When closed, it’s 0.47 inches thick and weighs just 2.65 pounds. The unique surface is easy to grip and fingerprint-resistant, and the port selection is refreshingly expansive: You get two USB-C, an HDMI, a USB-A, and a headphone jack.
The integrated Intel Arc GPU also provides a surprisingly high-performance gaming experience. I streamed some of my games to the cloud, and Intel’s Core Ultra 7 and glossy OLED display made for a solid gaming rig that avoided the emulation issues that made gaming on the Copilot+ PC a headache.
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One thing I should mention: heat. This isn’t the hottest laptop out there, but it’s certainly not the most cool and untroubled either. In my experience, I’d say it generates about the same amount of heat as the previous configuration of the Zenbook S 14 we tested with an Intel Core Ultra 5 (which we have noted at high level).
Just to put this into context, a year ago this was considered average; with the rollout of ARM architecture, expectations and perceptions around Windows PCs have changed. Now we have seen Windows computer running seemingly without fanThere’s no going back. This laptop gets hotter than any Copilot+ PC I’ve tested, yes, but it’s also incredibly thin.
The thinness also comes with a few other trade-offs, namely when it comes to sound output (which can get a bit noisyby the way), the whole device vibrates. This may or may not be a big deal for some, but it does affect the user experience and is an unavoidable physical result of working with such a thin form factor.
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In short, there’s more than one path to an AI-powered future, and laptop makers like Asus and Lenovo are proving that with devices that come in a myriad of configurations as the technology continues to advance at a breakneck pace. For consumers, this means choices, but also trade-offs.
For example, the Zenbook S 14 is available in the following versions:
Intel wanted to offer all the benefits of Windows chips on ARM without any of the compatibility or emulation issues, and they succeeded in some areas (battery life, performance, thin and light form factors), but failed in others (heat dissipation).
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Issues aside, the Zenbook S 14 is a boldly designed device and one of my favorite laptops of 2024 for its commitment to the experience. It’s a laptop I’d enthusiastically recommend to anyone who wants a gorgeous display, a powerful processor, and, above all, bold, ultraportable styling at a competitive price.
Asus Zenbook S 14 is Now available for pre-orderThe devices are expected to ship on September 24, 2024.
